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Jane Schoolcraft

Thesis

Jane Johnston Schoolcraft is a woman of a remarkable background. She was of Scottish-Irish and Ojibwa descent. Her culture greatly influenced her literary works and she was greatly skilled in writing in both her native language as well as English. Although never published during her lifetime, Schoolcraft was unique in that her prose and poetry are written in both English and the Ojibwa language. She is known for both her orignal works as well as translations of traditional Ojibwa tales and folklore.

Biography

Biography in Brief

• January 31st, 1800 – May 22nd, 1842

• Member of the Ojibwa tribe

• First known Native American literary writer

• Schoolcraft wrote in both Native and English languages

• Also known as “Bamewawagezhikaquay”

Woman of the Sound that Stars Make Rushing through the Sky.

• Learned the Ojibwa language and culture from her mother, and English literature from her father, an immigrant from Ireland

• Wrote poems and short fiction stories, however never published any of her works

A Confusing Legacy

Biography Cont.

Cont.

"The literary legacy of Schoolcraft has been difficult to trace, as she did not seek publication of her work, aside from several pieces of poetry and prose she contributed to a handwritten magazine, The Muzzeniegun or Literary Voyager, written and circulated to friends by her husband, the early anthropologist and folklorist Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, when Jane was in her midtwenties"(Johnson, p. 223, 2013).

Confusing Legacy Cont.

"The remaining body of her work lies in unorganized, often unsigned papers, journals, letters, and a bound manuscript of her poems compiled and most likely revised by Henry after her death, as well as in Henry's books on American Indian culture, legends, and customs, in which he sometimes attributes particular verses and stories to individual authors—including his wife—but just as often does not"(Johnson, p. 223, 2013).

  • This has led to great difficulty in collecting all of Schoolcraft's writings.
  • In 2007 Robert Parker published the first and only collection of her writings.

Lost in Translation

  • Schoolcraft's original works have been partially lost over the years

  • Some of her poems were originally published by her husband who edited them heavily and did not credit her.

Cont.

  • None of her original works were published during her life time

  • Several translations of her works have been discovered, but is impossible to determine which translation was written by her, her husband, or an unknown party.

Writings

• Schoolcraft wrote poetry and short stories

• She also translated Ojibwa tales and poems into English

• Translated some of her original works from English to Ojibwa

• It is unclear whether all of her writings are original. Some of her works in English may be translation of spoken word Ojibwa stories, poems, or songs.

Sweet Willy

Sweet Willy

• Poem about Schoolcraft’s son, William Schoolcraft, who died as an infant at the age of 2 years and 8 months

• Despite the loss of her child, Schoolcraft still has faith in God

• Content and structure is similar to the writings of Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor.

• These authors also have poems discussing the loss of children and how it relates to their faith in God.

To The Pine Tree

Writings

cont.

• Written in Ojibwa native language and translated to English

• Unclear if this is an original work or a translation of a poem from Schoolcraft’s Native culture.

• Poem rejoices her return to her home with emphasis on the beauty of nature surrounding her.

• Her writings often revolve around the beauty of nature and seeks to foster a connection to nature

To The Pine Tree

To the Pine Tree in her Native Language

An example of Schoolcraft's famous

poem,"To the Pine Tree" translated in

her native Language

To the Miscodeed

To the Miscodeed

  • This poem is similar to "To the Pine Tree" due to it being deeply connected to nature
  • Miscodeed is a little pink flower that blooms in the spring
  • This poem also focuses on the beauty of nature that surrounds her
  • Similar to her other writings, the rhyme scheme is fairly simple
  • Content is to be taken literally and lacks analogies, similies, and other literary devices.

To a Bird

  • "Schoolcraft begs the singing creature, who she knows will soon fly away, to stay and ease her lonely, anxious hours, as she ruminates on fleeting pleasures and happiness. Her poetry is often at its most vivid and energetic when she combines natural images with an urgency to witness them before they are gone" (Johnson, p. 230, 2013).

Writings

cont.

References

  • Johnson, Cheri. "Schoolcraft, Jane Johnston (1800—1842)." American Writers, Supplement 23, edited by Jay Parini, Charles Scribner's Sons, 2013, pp. 223-238. Gale eBooks, https://link-gale-com.ezproxy.brescia.edu/apps/doc/CX2010200023/GVRL?u=brescia1&sid=GVRL&xid=611d693f. Accessed 20 Feb. 2020.

  • Schoolcraft, J. J., & Parker, R. D. (2008). The sound the stars make rushing through the sky: the writings of Jane Johnston Schoolcraft. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

  • Levine, R. S. (2017). The Norton anthology of American literature. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

  • Wiget, A. (1994). Dictionary of native american literature (Garland reference library of the humanities, vol. 1815). New York: Garland. (1994). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from INSERT-MISSING-DATABASE-NAME.

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